I walk into seminary and sit down. Something is strange--no one is talking. I ask the boy next to me what we're supposed to be doing, but he doesn't answer.

I ask the teacher, and she doesn't answer either. I decide to just read until something else happens.

This class sounds pretty odd, doesn't it? Would any of you like to go to this class? Imagine having a seminary class where the students and the teacher didn't interact, talk, or learn together. Doesn't sound like a place you'd like to be, does it?

Since you can't get together physically with your class in online seminary, you may at times feel alone. To avoid this, it will take a little extra effort to cultivate a seminary class environment online. It might take a little while, but as you reach out and communicate with your teacher and other students, you'll begin to know and feel comfortable with one another. But it won't just happen. You need to be willing to create a positive learning environment in your class. Your efforts will help you and others to have a better experience. Most of us are used to a classroom. Let's take what we know from your past learning experiences and apply it to online seminary. Let's go through a couple of scenarios that you're familiar with and then see how they can happen in online seminary. Usually when you walk into a seminary class, your teacher will greet you with a handshake and a smile. How does that work in online seminary? Well, when you log into your online seminary class, your teacher won't jump out of the screen to shake your hand. But he or she will have changed the announcements that you find at the top of the course homepage. There you can see what announcements they have and know what to expect for the week. Sometimes your teacher will send you personal messages to the online seminary site, and they will pop up when you log into the site. Read those messages, and be sure to respond. Teachers don't know if or when you read them, so just be polite and respond with a small message confirming that you got it. When you are in a face-to-face seminary class, after you shake the teacher's hand, you'll find a place to sit next to one of your friends. You start chatting with that person. After everyone has arrived, the teacher usually starts an informal conversation with the class, asking how they're doing, what events or activities they have going on that day or week. How does that work in online seminary? If you take a look at the course navigation menu, you’ll see the People area.

On this page you can click on anyone's picture to bring up their profile to read a little bit about them. You could also send a message to say hello, to ask questions, or tell about something that happened to you in your life. This is where you'll need to be a little brave and put yourself out there to talk to other people. But wait, how can we have conversations or discussions together as a class? Since we can't see one another, how are we supposed to get to know one another? Good question. At the beginning of each week or in the learning activities, you'll have forums or class discussions. Some will help us get to know one another, some will help us discuss the gospel principles we're learning. Let's look at this one, for example. In this class, the teacher has put a forum or class discussion as part of an announcement. She asked, "We already know you are super. But if you could have any additional super-power, which would you choose, and why?" You can see from the discussion that her students said what super-powers they would have. And you can see how other classmates responded to their comments. If you don't jump in and participate in these discussions, you could feel alone. These class discussions really help you to get to know the other people in your class. You will grow to love one another as you read about each other and read about one another's life experiences and testimonies. So wait. I've had some helpful experiences in gospel classes where someone shared an experience in their life and bore testimony that were really powerful. And I learned a lot from what they said. Are these class discussions where those things happen in online seminary? Yes. You also will have your once a week class where you would get together either face to face or online and be able to talk and interact with one another. These class discussions will really help you feel connected to your seminary experience. Again, it will take some work, but it's easy to get used to these class discussions. All you need to remember is the golden rule. Do unto others as you would have others do unto you? Right. If someone is brave enough to write something, comment on what they wrote with some encouragement or gratitude for what they wrote. They won't know if you liked what they wrote or that you learned from it if you don't tell them. If someone has an insight or funny thing to share, wouldn't you like to hear it? So it sounds like what we choose to do in our online class will either make it interactive, or you will feel alone without anybody to talk to. You're right. Part of your preparation to feel the Spirit in seminary is to do your part to create a good environment in your class. Your efforts will help you and others to have a better experience. Here are three things you could do to help create a positive learning environment in your seminary class. First, remember why you are in seminary. The Lord knows you and all the members of your class. He desires that you learn of him and listen to His word. Second, ask yourself how you can help. Look for how you can help others learn better. Some people go to seminary with the idea, What can I get out of this class? What's in it for me? Instead, ask yourself, How can I help others? Who in this class needs my help? Reach out to other class members on the online seminary site on a daily basis, through the forums or through the messaging system. Third, be courageous and reach out to those in your class. Get to know them. Help them feel a part of your class. Helping one another feel a part of the class and serving one another will help you feel the Spirit more throughout the lessons and in life. As we go through the seminary year, we will remind you of these important things several times. As you work to create a positive atmosphere in your seminary class, you'll find that it helps you and others feel the Spirit during class. Bye. See you later.